This invention relates to a flat panel display device and, more particularly, to a flat panel display device used in combination with various electronic equipment.
A flat panel display device, such as a liquid crystal display device, has been used in many applications because such a flat panel display device is advantageously thin in thickness, light in weight, and low in power consumption.
A light transmission type liquid crystal display device, for instance, is provided with a liquid crystal panel, a bezel, a frame, and a surface light source to illuminate the panel. The panel includes a pair of electrode substrates and a liquid crystal layer held between the substrates. The bezel is usually made of a sheet metal or other sufficiently strong materials while the frame is molded out of resins to effectively support the light source. The liquid crystal display device of this kind is built in a housing of electronic equipment, such as a portable personal computer, and handy terminal equipment.
In an attempt to make a flat panel display device thinner, recently a liquid crystal display panel has been directly built in a housing of electronic equipment. Such housing includes, for instance, a first housing unit with an opening corresponding to an effective display region of the liquid crystal panel and a second housing unit provided on the side of a surface light source. The first and second housing units are assembled to directly hold the liquid crystal display panel.
This structure is capable of making the electronic equipment incorporated with the flat panel display device much thinner as a whole because a conventional bezel is not necessary any longer.
However, it is likely to reduce the mechanical strength of the flat panel display device. Since the liquid crystal display panel is configured to pivot upon a reference axis of the electronic equipment, such a pivoting structure, in particular, may weaken the mechanical strength resulting in endurance reduction.
The flat panel display device is applied to a compact personal computer, for instance, with which the display device is assembled to be rotatable about a hinge of its main body. An operator often rotates the flat panel display device about the hinge. Thus, it is quite difficult to comply with requirements for the mechanical strength sufficiently.